Sustainable service supply chains

The service sector has a significant impact on the development of a more sustainable society. Service activities are integrated in all aspects of the economy and individuals’ lives. Sustainability issues have seen relatively less consideration by service industries. The service sector lagged in adoption of a supply chain perspective, whose origins are rooted in the manufacturing sector. This chapter introduces a service supply chain framework to integrate sustainability into service management. It starts by examining the characteristics of services and their sustainability implications. A brief literature review of the service supply chain is also provided. The service supply chain framework is developed with application to both manufacturing and services activities. Based on this framework, sustainability priorities for different service supply chains are identified, and their potential sustainability impacts in the broader economic system are reviewed. The chapter also examines the challenges and issues in the area of sustainable development in service supply chains, proposing a few topics for future research.